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History of Porn

The history of porn led to its status as a taboo in a sexually charged world.

By Filthy StaffPublished 8 years ago 5 min read
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Porn: the word itself strikes a sword in people’s perceptions; We can safely say that its one of the words in the English language that could potentially be black listed. Most people in polite company and conversation tend to refrain from using the word. But what caused this stigma to be attached to a simple four letter word? They say 80 percent of the internet is made up of purely pornographic material. Before we can begin searching for the reason that, despite the media saturation, the word is taboo, we must first ask the more important question: "What exactly is porn?" How did we end up with that terminology? And to answer that question, we must take a journey back in time to Ancient Greece, as surprising as it is, but not really, as most words in the English language are derived from it.

Greek Origins

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It is not entirely certain how exactly the terms pornography and pornographic came into common use, but the word “pornography” is similar to the Modern-day Greek word “pornographia,” whose meaning is in threefold: "prostitute," "to record/write," and “property.” This can lead us to draw the conclusion that: the earliest meaning of the word was literally a written description of prostitutes or prostitution. Unfortunately, no date has been recorded in history for the first use of the word in Greek language; Though the earliest attested use of it is "pornogrophos": someone writing of harlots; which has been recorded in the late 3rd century A.D. in the book Deipnosophists authored by Athennaeus.

The modern greek word pornographia is a translation of the French word pornography. It is also, at this point, interesting to note that any one particular language does not stand in isolation, its origins can come from various places and the cultural norms of those places are definitely going to have an impact on how the word is going to be used.

Once we begin following this line of thought, we come to see that it is known that the word for porn was in use by the French as early as the 1800s and did not enter the English lexicon until 1857 as a token that the British picked up from the French in the colonial United States. The French Royalty’s indulgence in sexuality is a tell tale sign of how and why this word came into use in the common tongue of the French and later found its way into the English language. Of course, depictions of sexual nature and sexuality both implicit and explicit are older than civilization itself; rock art and crude drawings from prehistoric times have been uncovered from France.

Evolution of Porn as a Concept

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However, the concept of pornography as it is recognized now did not exist until the Victorian era, before that there was a more subtle depiction of promiscuity. Here, pornography must be distinguished from erotica, in the same way in which art differs from literature. Erotica is the portrayal of high art aspirations that also focus on feelings and emotions, while pornography is a depiction of sexual activity in an often sensationalized manner in order to arouse the audience. In English, the term pornography was initially defined as “writing about prostitutes” much like its origins in the Greek language.

Interestingly enough, according to history, a large collection of antique erotica was excavated from Pompeii, a city burned under volcanic ash. Excavators found sexually explicit statues, sculptures, and murals but the most interesting artifact retrieved was a statue of the god Pan having sexual intercourse with a goat. These historical evidences all point back to porn always having been associated with an act of sexual nature. One could assume that the word would evolve in this meaning but from the get go porn would equal sex in the minds of human beings throughout the ages; be it our local caveman or Greek gods.

Porn as Expression

Image via Whitney Museum of American Art

The meaning of the word may not have evolved but the associations made to it or even how it was expressed has evolved greatly over time; The mediums used have increased in abundance, some being socially accepted and others not as much. These mediums include art, novels, film and theater. The biggest breakthrough in how people viewed porn was made by a famous pop artist Andy Warhol. He released the first ever erotic adult film called Blue Movie in 1969 (well isn’t that justice convenient).

It was the first time that art was integrated with such an explicit genre and released at a nationwide level in the United States. The response to such a movie was the mark of the Golden Age of Porn. Although many more movies were shot and released after 1969, like Mona in 1979 by Bill Osco, associations with people who viewed them was still a taboo, since expression of sexuality was, and in many ways still is, looked down upon in certain contexts.

At this time in history, porn became a symbol of expression, and since the movement for freedom of expression was on the rise, porn became more widely accepted as an artistic medium. For the next 15 years, releases of adult erotic films became prevalent. Actors like Marlon Brando started to star in different films that were heavily influenced by erotic movies. An excellent exampleis Brando’s famous work Last Tango in Paris. In fact, the 1973 production of The Devil in Miss Jones was in X-rated Critics Organization's Hall of Fame for astounding brilliance in sound recording, cinematography, and even story line!

The Digital Age and Porn

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Porn, now, has become available to any individual owning a personal computer. It represents a pleasure that the industry makes millions off of. Prostitution has been recorded as the oldest profession in the history of mankind, and from it has evolved a world-class form of entertainment. Nowadays porn has also become a suffix to any word as a sign of pleasure, such as word porn or food porn.

Popular culture has made the word "porn" itself far more acceptable than it once was. However, the industry is not without its flaws. There are many issues surrounding consent and age in many nations, and the discreet measures many actors take to conceal their identities makes these issues hard to monitor. One case that was highly publicized was that of Love Lace, a porn star who was forced and coerced into making porn films by her very abusive husband of that time. She was mentally and physically abused and coerced into making many films without consent. Meanwhile, there is a side to the industry that is letting women take control of their sexuality. Many female porn stars see their profession as empowering, and enjoy the financial and industry success it has brought them.

For the most part, porn is about perception. The less negative stigma there is surrounding it, the more open the market becomes. A growing percentage of society sees porn as a means of artistic, personal, and sexual expression. Embracing this mentality will draw much of the negativity not only out of sexuality, but out of a society that must conceal its sexuality in such a negatively charged atmosphere.

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About the Creator

Filthy Staff

A group of inappropriate, unconventional & disruptive professionals. Some are women, some are men, some are straight, some are gay. All are Filthy.

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